NOMADS, DODS & LAS:
a community-based framework for
sharing data

Steve Hankin

NOAA/Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory

Abstract:
This presentation will discuss tools and techniques available today for greatly improved access
to model outputs over the Internet. Most interchange of model outputs still occurs today via file
transfers, typically via FTP. File transfers require the recipient to become a participant in the
time consuming business of data management -- dealing with storage of large files, multiple
formats, and data content that may be spread across many files (e.g. a time series). The
community is recognizing and utilizing new tools through which scientists may view and obtain
precise subsets of data directly from the provider's site while remaining wholly insulated from
these barriers. These tools facilitate much higher levels of collaboration, opening the door to
community-wide model intercomparison. Recent additions to the tools are bringing real time and
historical observations into the mix, as well. Several groups are capitalizing on the use of these
tools, including GODAE (Global Ocean Data Assimilation Experiment), NVODS (National
Virtual Ocean Data System), NOMADS (NOAA Operational Model Archive and Distribution
System), various "MIPs" (model intercomparison projects), and the "Data Grid" (Dept. of
Energy et. al.)